5 Chiropractic Techniques to Lower Your Blood Pressure

While most doctors are quick with a prescription pad, when you see a Mesa chiropractor you are more likely to get to the root of the problem rather than just mask the symptoms. An Arizona chiropractor will work to achieve balance in your body by adjusting your spine to release any nerve impingement. Numerous studies have been performed over the last decade using chiropractic treatment in Mesa to lower blood pressure, some using chiropractic treatment alone, some in conjunction with blood pressure lowering medications.

High blood pressure can be a silent killer, since it seldom exhibits any symptoms. So what is the doctor looking for when they take your blood pressure reading? As your heart beats it pumps blood into your arteries. Your doctor is measuring the force of your blood as it pushes against the walls of those arteries. Your blood pressure reading is given in two numbers, such as 120/80. The top number is your systolic blood pressure which is a measure of the pressure in your arteries when your heart beats. The bottom number is your diastolic blood pressure, which is a measure of the pressure in your arteries in between heartbeats. 120/80 is considered a good blood pressure reading. Numbers closer to 140/90 are considered borderline high blood pressure and anything above that is considered high blood pressure (hypertension).

It is estimated that one out of every three adults in America has high blood pressure. Patients often make the mistake of ignoring a diagnosis of hypertension since they feel fine. Hypertension can be extremely serious, and is one of the leading causes of stroke, heart disease, and kidney failure. If not corrected, over time high blood pressure can damage blood vessels and organs throughout your body. The Center for disease control states that high blood pressure is either the primary or contributing cause of nearly 400,000 deaths each year in the United States.

Most cases of hypertension are corrected with prescription medication, although some cases are difficult to control. Chiropractic care to lower blood pressure may eliminate the need for prescription medications (which are not without side effects) or it can be used as an adjunct treatment when high blood pressure is difficult to regulate. Prescription blood pressure lowering medications are not only expensive, but the list of side effects includes headache, lightheadedness, dizziness, fainting, potassium deficiency, frequent urination, upset stomach and bleeding gums. If you can find a natural means to lower your blood pressure why wouldn’t you try it?

The Atlas

Numerous studies have cited a significant lowering of high blood pressure after a chiropractic adjustment to the Atlas vertebra. The C-1 vertebra is known as the Atlas vertebra since it supports the head, like the mythological Atlas holds the world. Even a very small misalignment of the Atlas vertebra can exert pressure on the brain stem through which all the nerves in your spine must pass. The brain stem connects the brain to the spinal cord, so that the brain can send messages through the cord to the rest of the body. The brainstem also plays an important part in the regulating of cardiac and respiratory functions, consciousness, and sleep.

One University study showed that chiropractic treatment to lower high blood pressure produced such a dramatic effect that it was equal to using not one, but two different blood pressure medications in conjunction. It was evident in x-rays that the chiropractic treatment had realigned the Atlas vertebra, thus lowering the patient’s blood pressure with no adverse side effects.

Interestingly, two different studies have shown a reduction in high blood pressure following chiropractic treatment for high blood pressure, but when the same chiropractic adjustments are performed on patients with normal blood pressure, the adjustment produces no change in blood pressure. That’s because chiropractic treatment doesn’t explicitly lower blood pressure, but instead, aligning the spine allows blood pressure to return to a normal level. That’s how chiropractic treatment produces a positive effect on the entire body. The human body has an amazing ability to heal itself given the right conditions. Chiropractic treatment helps to bring about the optimum conditions for healing.

Alleviate Pain

The nerves in your spinal cord branch out to every area of your body. There are corresponding nerves that reach from your spinal cord to your limbs and organs. Adjusting the upper vertebra can create a balanced healing environment for those nerves that control involuntary functions such as heartbeat, breathing, and blood pressure. Good spinal alignment helps every part of the body function optimally to maintain homeostasis, which is the ability of your body to maintain a stable state despite changes in the surrounding environment. One example would be maintaining our blood pressure at the correct level. In addition, a misalignment anywhere in the spine can cause pain, and pain is known to raise blood pressure.

Healthy Lifestyle

The field of chiropractics focuses on the more natural forms of healing, and looks for ways to encourage the body to heal itself. Your chiropractor may recommend lifestyle changes that can help lower high blood pressure including, regular exercise, weight loss, healthy eating, reducing caffeine intake and not smoking.

Relaxation

Massage therapy and chiropractic adjustment can relax tight muscles, and a state of relaxation is important to maintaining healthy blood pressure.

Overall Well Being

A healthy spine is vital to maintaining health in every area of the body.

Chiropractic Care Near You, BodyWorkz

Meet Dr. Janeen Wallace, whose accomplishments include graduating with a B.Sc. from the University of Western Ontario, and graduating Cum Laude from New York Chiropractic College in 1997. She then opened her first practice in Syracuse New York while continuing to teach full time at New York Chiropractic College. In in addition, in 2013 she became a licensed acupuncturist in the state of Arizona. If you are interested in a more natural healing process, call BodyWorkz to schedule an initial appointment to see what chiropractic care has to offer you.